Ka Wana’ao o ka Pakipika
The Dawning Light of the Pacific
The design process is a complex method of search and discovery. It does not simply begin when entering a studio or end with the final presentation drawing. Instead, it is an evolving process that observes and questions life’s mysteries, and even continues while we sleep, as dreams and the subconscious create an alternative method of sight. Each step forward or back reveals a clearer understanding of the solution.
The following text describes my process in designing a Bahá’í House of Worship that received the FabStruct International Fabric Competition Honor Award in 1997.
Childhood Memories
Each building has a purpose. Not only does it need to be physically sound and safe, but it also must accommodate the emotional needs of its occupants. By revisiting my childhood memories, I apply those early emotional experiences into the program of the building. Form follows function, yet emotions fuel the spirit. Combining these two theories in the design process creates a clear and pure product.
Mind-Mapping
Mind-Mapping is a visual, non-linear, wordless way of thinking. My drawing illustrates the Hawaiian Islands’ relationship to the Bahá’í House of Worship and captures the interchange of history, traditions, theories, methods, and environment of the past, present, and future.
World Mapping
The universal purpose of the Bahá’í House of Worship is prayer and meditation. Although the building must be nine-sided and have a dome, the architect is not restricted in any way in choosing a design style.
When participants travel to a place of worship, they take part in a transitional process that begins in the physical world (earth) and reaches out to the realm of limitless space. Beautiful gardens help to take the participant through this transitional process by calming the mind and body and preparing them to accept God.
The realization of limitless space is a personal journey for each individual. The Bahá’í House of Worship, like other religious places of worship - mosques, cathedrals, temples, and outdoor sacred spaces - is a manifestation of the unity of our physical and spiritual qualities.
Inner Spirit
The drawing of these two circles, one small circle and a larger one with an illuminated center, is the expressive image of our inner spirit and its inherent potential.
The larger circle represents the inner spirit as it grows, develops, and matures. While the center becomes brighter, the outer lining gets thinner, like blowing up a balloon. As the object becomes larger, it also creates more surface area, forcing it to come into contact with more things. I consider these contacts the tests and difficulties that challenge our inner spirit.
The smaller circle represents reverting back and relying on the basics of comfort. I consider this a symbol of failing tests and not overcoming difficulties.
Traditions
Traditions are not just ways of the past, but also ways we live to remind ourselves of who we are. Acknowledging traditions and the way people live means respecting the individual. The Hawaiian traditions of the past, present, and future were considered in this project.
Sketch
Journal 4: 07.21.96 • Shadow - If you can see your shadow, turn around and walk the other way, into the light. As man looks at his shadow, reflecting all that he stands for, he sees himself- the outline of the body that is entirely of this earthly existence. When man looks toward light, he sees no shadow. This is perspective. From here, he walks toward an infinite space, beyond the earthly existence he lives in.
Model: 08.20.96 • Transition of the sketch into a model. First built form to test materials and their use. Implantation of a structural mast, a central compression ring, and transparent fabric to shape the dome.
Foundation Details
The Hawaiians were master craftsmen. They first arrived on the islands on hand-built sailing vessels from as far away as New Zealand. The advanced and refined building techniques they used in their canoes were also used in the design and construction of the first grass houses.
The drawings illustrate the framing and intricate details they used. The lapping, tying and connection joints demonstrate a sound knowledge of structural forces, which enabled these simple houses, which may look brittle, to hold up to the high winds, storms and other harsh island conditions.
Structural Principles
The use of a membrane tension ring (A) holds the architectural membrane (made from a composite of fiberglass and polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE) that is suspended from the nine compression masts. The lower portion of the membrane, which has prefabricated design cuts for the entrances, is tied down at the base. This stretches the membrane into its first formative shape.
An advantage of using a membrane is its property of being easily shaped. To form the dome, metal stay brackets (B), custom designed “ballooned” interior connections (C), tension ring and compression masts (D) pull on each other to create tension that defines the shape.
Another advantage is the tent effect. In perspective, tents are the most structurally advanced building types to handle harsh conditions like wind, rain, and other natural elements. Extreme mountain climbers use tents similar to this structure in the most severe conditions on Earth. Although intense temperature changes, wind, rain, and snow exert large amounts of force onto the tents, their physical nature and materials absorb those forces and transfer them efficiently into the ground. A flexible, active structure is better able to handle harsh wind and rain loads than any rigid one.
Close attention to detail creates an elegant and fluid form. To correctly tension the cable, the setting is determined by striking the large support cables that hold the membrane in place and listening for a unique sound. The same principle is used to tune pianos.
Partial Building Section
Working drawings are the construction documents used by the builder. With these drawings, the design is actualized. Engineers also use these drawings to size the structural elements and materials that are specified by the designer to meet live load conditions and life safety standards.
Human figures are added to the drawings, giving a sense of scale and helping the viewer imagine the actual size of the structure.
Threshold
Each entrance is a welcoming threshold that blankets the landscape with open arms stretched forth. This threshold helps us prepare ourselves and develops images and ideas of communicating with God before entering the House of Worship. We become quiet and walk softly, freeing our minds of the weight of this world and transforming our inner beings for the journey ahead.
Architectural Membrane
There are many reasons for choosing the Sheerfill® II-HT architectural membrane made of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). According to the manufacturer, Birdair, Inc. of Amherst, New York, the unique qualities of the material include:
Proven Durability: Tension structures of Sheerfill® have been in constant use since 1972 without any sign of material deterioration from any cause. Teflon glass structures exhibit durability and weather resistant factors with installations ranging from above the Arctic Circle to the desert of Saudi Arabia, totaling over 16 million square feet.
Uniquely Advantageous Solar Optical Properties: Teflon coated fiberglass offers the advantage of translucency (available up to 21 percent) to provide free day lighting with the concurrent advantage of rejecting heat due to the high 75 percent reflectance. Even high-tech, tinted and mirrored glass has difficulty approaching the ratio of light transmitted to heat rejected off Teflon fabric.
In addition, the light passing through this fabric is almost perfectly diffused and gives true color rendition to elements below the roof. The high reflectivity of the interior fabric increases efficiency of internal lighting and can create an attractive beacon effect at night.
Seating
The covered dome can accommodate an estimated 600 seats with generous aisles between rows and limiting the longest row to 35 seats, which meets fire and life safety codes for exiting purposes. Additional seating can be added outside the dome between the membrane wings (see shaded areas on plan).
Worship
Inside the House of Worship, etched onto a clear glass covering that hovers in the center of the dome is the Greatest Name, “Yá Bahá’ul-Abhá,” which when translated from Arabic means ‘O Glory of Glories’ or ‘O Glory of the All-Glorious.’ This invocation calligraphy was designed by Mishkín-Qalam. As we pray, meditate, and supplicate to God looking upwards, this breathtaking and peaceful sense of infinite space confirms our spiritual connection.
The Final Design
Ka Wana’ao o ka Pakipika is Hawaiian for “The Dawning Light of the Pacific.” This name reflects the concept that light is the guiding tool through darkness. At night, the Dawning Light of the Pacific will illuminate the sky and be reflected off the ocean’s surface into greater dimensions. At dawn, the transitional morning light will be captured, illuminating the temple just as dawn prayers illuminate our hearts.